She socked it to him.
President Trump wanted Aretha Franklin to perform at his inauguration — but the Queen of Soul had no R-E-S-P-E-C-T for the Republican real estate tycoon and declined, according to a new report.
Shortly after his victory, Trump ordered Presidential Inaugural Committee chairman Tom Barrack to ask Franklin to play the gig, the Daily Beast reports, citing anonymous sources.
Trump considered Franklin a friend — but the devoutly Democratic singer and civil rights activist despised his politics, and told pals there was “no amount of money” that could entice her to perform on his big day, the news site reports.
Instead he had to settle for country crooner Toby Keith and ’90s rock band 3 Doors Down.
But Franklin — who performed at Barack Obama’s inauguration — kept her snub quiet. When asked in December 2016 if she would give a repeat performance for Trump, she said only, “That’s a good question … We’ll see.”
Franklin had actually been in discussions to join Hillary Clinton on the campaign trail, but ended up only doing one fundraiser, the Daily Beast reports. She also attended the 2016 Democratic National Convention with her family.
Trump raised eyebrows Thursday when he made note of Franklin’s death by describing her as someone who “worked for me on numerous occasions.”
The diva performed at Trump’s casinos on a handful of occasions, but the White House refused to explain exactly what the commander-in-chief had meant.
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